Favors
by Fiery Koneko
Summary: You did someone a favor, you don't want do really admid the reason, what will you do? You obviously say:I just owed you a favor. Sesshoumaru and Kagura do the same. How long will that last? SesshoumaruKagura Chapter 5 up
1. Default Chapter

**Favors**  
  
Disclaimer: I don't owe anything of Inu-Yasha. And if I did I wouldn't be writing fanfictions.  
  
_Hi everyone! Well, this is my very first Sess/Kagura (song)fic so go easy on the commentaries! I tried to make it as realistic as possible (hopefully no OOC at all). I hope you enjoy reading it. Any suggestions to further chapters are welcome!! Oh yeah, I forgot: Puts puppy dog eyes PLEASE REVIEW!!  
  
**Chapter 1**_  
  
"Curse you, Naraku!!" Kagura said with great effort. There she was, suffering in a terrible and almost unbearable pain. "I hope that if I die I get a chance to see you burn in hell!!"

Finally, Naraku has been destroyed and for a glorious 30 second moment she thought she was finally free. But apparently Naraku had seen that coming, and before the final battle had started he had put her heart in a place swarming with tiny very hungry youkai, who on this moment were devouring her heart very slowly. That was about 10 times worse than Naraku squeezing her heart. (Sorry to make that sound so freaky, just to give you the idea...;;) Naraku had different plans of returning Kagura's freedom even after his death. Now, with the last of her strength, all she could do was leading the wind course a bit in a different direction so her scent would remained unnoticed and no other youkai would get a chance to attack her. She was on the moment leaning against a tree, struggling to stay standing up, convinced that if she fell she wouldn't be able to get to her feet anymore.

She wondered how came she was bearing so much pain without dying; was this a part of Naraku's scheme to punish her for her many attempts to freedom? If she was going to die, why wasn't she dead yet? But all the same, she was going to die, just when she finally gained freedom. She knew was going to die, and it was not fair, all alone and with no hope.  
  
_I tried to kill the pain, But only brought more. (So much more) I lay dying, And I'm pouring, crimson regret, and betrayal.  
  
I'm dying, Praying, Bleeding, Screaming.  
  
Am I too lost to be saved? Am I too lost?  
  
_Little did she know Sesshoumaru and his companions were not so far away.   
  
"Sesshoumaru-sama, Rin is hungry! Can Rin go and get some food?" Rin stood next to Sesshoumaru waiting patiently for Sesshoumaru to answer.  
  
"Take Ah-Un with you." he said.  
  
"Sesshoumaru-sama, where is Jaken-sama?" Rin asked in a worried tone. "Rin can't find him anywhere."  
  
"He's on a "mission"; he will come back in a few days. Since he's not around to keep an eye on you, stay in this area."  
  
"Hai!!" Rin answered cheerfully. "Come on, Ah-Un, let's find some food!!"  
  
Rin walked along with Ah-Un into the forest. Sesshoumaru listened sharply to any suspicious noise in case a youkai was foolish enough to attack Rin so close nearby. But there was no noise, only Rin's footsteps in the tall grass, walking further away. No, he did not sensed or smelled any youkai in this area, and if a youkai would attack Rin without him notice (his insignificant presence so small that even himself couldn't sense), Ah-Un was able to take care of that pitiful excuse of a youkai.  
  
Kagura knew she wasn't able to resist much longer; there was nothing else she could do. Her strength came to an end and the wind started blowing his normal course. She was very weak, on the verge of dying. The pain paused for a moment, just enough to hear footsteps nearby...  
  
"Ah-Un, what's wrong?" Rin asked, as Ah-Un's heads suddenly jerked to the left.  
  
They sniffed in the air as if they were smelling something.  
  
"What's the matter? Is there something over there?" Rin looked in the direction Ah-Un's heads had turned.  
  
She started walking trough the bamboo forest with Ah-Un behind her, pushing obstacles out of her way when suddenly she saw Kagura, half leaning against a tree, bleeding terribly and her face in a very painful expression.  
  
"It's Kagura!!" she said surprised. "The women that uses wind!! Are you ok?"  
  
Kagura growled in disgust. From all the people in the world, the ones she did not want to encounter with before she died were Sesshoumaru's companions —less of all, that revolting toad, although she was surprised/glad not seeing him there—, or Sesshoumaru himself (She didn't want him to see her humiliated like that. Her appearance was terrible)  
  
"Go away! Be gone before I finish you— AARGH!!!" She put her hand on her chest and tried to bear the terrible pain has came as quick as it was gone, as she felt her heart was coming apart.  
  
"We've got to find help" Rin said determined yet she didn't know exactly how...  
  
She thought for a moment. Not even Ah-Un could get fast enough to Sesshoumaru, let aside her. If she couldn't go to Sesshoumaru, in that case...she took a deep breath preparing to scream very loud.  
  
Sesshoumaru's nose wrinkled. What was that disgusting smell? There was no doubt about it; it was blood. Youkai blood to be exact. It smelled rather familiar in a way. Wait, it was coming from the direction Rin went. But Rin usually screamed when she was in danger... It was quiet for a moment. Sesshoumaru focused to listen to any unusual sound, sharpening his ears to the maximum, when suddenly... "SESSOUMARU-SAMA, COME QUIK!!"  
  
With still ringing ears from the tremendous yell Rin gave he dashed to the place where Rin's voice came from, expecting her to be in danger. But she wasn't, instead she was standing there with Ah-Un, but she wasn't alone. A few meters away stood Kagura, looking seriously hurt, covered in blood, with one hand on her chest, the other holding on a tree to keep her balance, which cost great effort, with an agonizing face-expression making clear she was in a terrible pain. It took Sesshoumaru a few seconds to analyze the situation and to know what was going on. There was a sudden tension between Sesshoumaru and Kagura, as they kept staring at each other. Kagura cursing under her breath because that that she didn't want to happen actually just has happened and wondering what was going to happen next, and Sesshoumaru, questioning himself what was going to happen and what he would do the best.  
  
_Do you remember me; Lost for so long? Will you be on the other side? Or will you forget me?  
  
I'm dying, Praying, Bleeding, Screaming.  
  
Am I too lost to be saved? Am I too lost?  
  
_He advanced a few step in her direction and stopped until there was only a meter distant between them. The tension still was there and even Rin could notice how close they were, and started wondering why Sesshoumaru had done that. Her question was soon answered as Kagura, who was still moaning in pain, lost her balance and fell backwards. Sesshoumaru disappeared and reappeared behind her and simply caught her from behind, showing no expression on his face. He slowly lowered himself to the ground until he was kneeling/half sitting on the ground with Kagura half in his arms (just /- when he was holding Rin in his arms when he revived her --).  
  
"Tell me, what has happened to you." he said in his monotone voice.  
  
"N-N-Naraku, t-that bastard" Kagura managed to say between pains. "...m-m-y heart...place....hungry youkai..."  
  
His supposition was right. He felt she was at the weakest a youkai could be.  
  
_My wounds cry for the grave. My soul cries for deliverance. Will I be denied? Christ! Tourniquet! My suicide.  
_  
"I-I'm glad to see you..." Kagura managed to gasp, struggling to keep her eyes open. "...one l-l-last time...."  
  
Her eyes closed and her breath stopped; she was dead (Duh!!) Rin was crying softly, and Sesshoumaru's hard expression softened to a half-sad face, which only lasted for a second, but enough for Rin to notice it. Hesitantly he put his hand on the Tenseiga. Many flashbacks of his many encounters with Kagura flew trough his mind. How they met for the first time, the day she offered him the 2 Shikon shards for destroying Naraku instead...wait, why was he thinking suddenly about that? He quickly got his mind back and focused on whether he was going to revive her or not. Finally, taking a decision he drew his Tenseiga and swished once over Kagura's body. Instantly something that looked more like a red soul came flying into Kagura's body, where her heart was supposed to be. Short after that they heard a heart beating loudly, until the noise disappeared. A few seconds later Kagura's eyes opened, looking unsure. What has happened to her? She was pretty sure she has died. Se saw how Sesshoumaru withdrew his sword and understood everything. He had revived her. But why had he done that? He wouldn't do favors to anyone. Suddenly she realized she was in Sesshoumaru's arms. She quickly got up and blushing a bit (and yes, Rin took notice of this too), jumped a few meters away from him.  
  
"Why did you revive me?" she asked. Sesshoumaru got up as well. "You're welcome" he answered ironically.  
  
"In fact, I was just practicing the Tenseiga technique; my main intension was not to revive you.  
  
"Hmpf, I really don't care what your main intension was, what matters that I'm alive. And don't think you can bossy me around just because you brought me back to life, OK? "  
  
She turned around and started walking away. Suddenly she stopped.  
  
"Not that I'm grateful or something, but..." She turned her head a bit giving Sesshoumaru a sideways glance. "...thanks."  
  
After that she took a feather out of her hair, which transformed, and took off flight.  
  
_**End chapter 1 **  
  
So, how was it? Well, I really hope that nor Kagura or Sesshoumaru sounded OOC, if they did, please let me know IN A FRIENDLY, POSSITIVE WAY!! The song inside it was Tourniquet from Evanescence. I actually skipped the refrain, for those who haven't noticed because according to me it wasn't matching with the fic. DON'T FORGET TO REVIEW!!  
  
From: Fiery Koneko _

_A/n: That thing that looked like a red soul, is (like almost everyone noticed) Kagura's heart. Since Kagura is Naraku's extension, her heart is somewhere else. And I suppose that if she revives after Naraku's dead, she's completely independent. Well, it least that's my theory ;; _


	2. Chapter 2

**Favors**  
  
Disclaimer: I don't owe anything of Inu-Yasha. And if I did I wouldn't be writing fanfictions.  
  
_Finally I was able to update!! I'm really sorry to keep some of you waiting; I had a lot of homework and project stuff to take care of. And all because that evil school!! But they messed with the wrong koneko this time!! I will burn the school to the ground!! Mwhahahaha!! Errr, does anyone have any matches around here??!! clears throatOops, I kinda got carried away, gomen. Anyway, I hope you'll enjoy it. I mean the fanfics, not the burn-the-school-to-the-ground-action. (Don't take me serious about that. I was just fooling around ) By the way: Don't forget to review!!!  
  
**Chapter 2**_  
  
"Whaaaat! All that happened while I was away!!" Jaken looked struck with horror at Rin, who just finished updating Jaken about the latest events he missed while he was away. "Sesshoumaru-sama revived _Kagura _with the Tenseiga?! This couldn't have happened!! Why wasn't I there to give him my humble advice? Anyway, do you have any more _specific _details? Maybe a clue why Sesshoumaru-sama revived that Kagura-bitch?"  
  
"Hai!!" Rin answered happily. (Ignoring completely what Jaken said about Kagura) "Eh, let's see, Sesshoumaru-sama looked a bit concerned about Kagura. And a little bit sad too, when she died in his arms." (Jaken's expression changed to pure horror and surprise, because he couldn't imagine Kagura in Sesshoumaru's arms.) "And Rin thinks she saw Kagura blushing!"  
  
"Who, Kagura? She..._blushing_??!" Jaken asked confused.  
  
"Hai" was the little girl's answer.  
  
"Rin, don't tell me you're still thinking that Kagura actually likes Sesshoumaru."  
  
"No, Rin doesn't think that anymore" Rin said with a smile.  
  
"Good", Jaken said relieved that Rin had finally gotten that theory out of her head.  
  
"Rin doesn't think that, Rin _knows _that" Rin continued. "And Rin thinks Sesshoumaru-sama's in love with Kagura t—" Jaken quickly covered her mound, and looked at Sesshoumaru, and was relieved to see he was standing out of earshot.  
  
"Quiet!!" he hissed. "If Sesshoumaru-sama hears you talking about that he'll..."   
  
Kagura sat in the grass looking at the sky. She sighed. Some time ago she had looked at the sky and wished to be free, now she was free, looking at the same sky, yet she felt hollow inside and couldn't explain why. She hated when that happened. There were so many unexplainable feelings; she wondered how she actually could keep on with that. But deep inside she had the feeling Sesshoumaru might had something to do with that. Each encounter with him was the same. She had concluded it was because she was a bit happy and relieved she finally had found someone with the ability of destroying Naraku and setting her free. But now, Naraku is destroyed and her feelings about him had remained the same.  
  
"_Hmpf, I don't get it. Why am I even thinking about him?! I've got better things to do than having him in my thoughts._"she thought as the image of Sesshoumaru kept haunting her thoughts. "_And I still don't understand why I felt so weird the moment after he revived me. Those feelings are so pathetic_."  
  
"You think so?" a voice in her head answered.  
  
"_Who the hell are you?!_" Kagura thought  
  
"Why I'm your subconscious of course!!" The voice replied. "Nothing in your head is hidden to me. And I see you often think about him."  
  
"_Out of my head, you bitch! My thoughts are mine alone and I don't rely on anyone or anything to fix my problems for me!_" Kagura mentally answered.  
  
"You're calling me a bitch? For you information, I am your subconscious, so I am you!! Ha ha, you're actually insulting yourself, you know!"  
  
"SHUT THE FUCK UP AND LET ME THINK QUIETLY OR ELSE!!" Kagura suddenly realize she had screamed, really screamed and had not mentally thought her last sentence. She looked quickly around, hoping that no youkai had heard her, or else they might thought she was mentally disturbed or something.  
  
"OK, if you say so. But I think you've got to see Sesshoumaru one more time to sort out exactly what you're feeling. We'll meet soon!" and her subconscious "left".  
  
Kagura sighed. To see Sesshoumaru one more time? She shook her head. No, she had no reason to see him now that she was free. But still, deep inside she was longing to see him again one more time...  
  
Jaken grumbled. Why did Sesshoumaru left him with Rin _every single time _he had to take care of some business? It was just not fair. He had always been allowed to go with Sesshoumaru if he had to go somewhere. But now, with Rin around he had to play the role as babysitter. Why did Sesshoumaru have to pick a little human girl as one if his companions?  
  
"Jaken-sama, can you go with Rin to get some food? Rin is hungry again."  
  
Jaken looked at Rin. Right now he very moody because Sesshoumaru had revived Kagura and he wasn't around to prevent that, and also because Sesshoumaru had left him, again, to take care of Rin.  
  
"NO, go with Ah-Un and stop bothering me!"  
  
But Sesshoumaru-sama said you had to go with Rin." "I don't care just...just go." Rin gave Jaken an odd look; he was actually disobeying Sesshoumaru's orders. (The toad hadn't realized that yet)  
  
"Ah-Un, let's go." she said.  
  
Jaken watched her go with the two-headed youkai. He turned around facing the (camp)fire. If he hadn't, he would have seen a shadow stalking Rin. Suddenly he realized what he had done. Even if Rin could be annoying sometimes, he had to take care of her, or Sesshoumaru was going to kill him.  
  
"What have I done? If something bad happens to Rin, something worse is going to happen to me if Sesshoumaru-sama finds out!"  
  
He quickly stood up, turned around and was about to run in the direction Rin just went, when suddenly...  
  
"AAAAAAH!! JAKEN-SAMA, HELP!!!" Jaken froze. It was Rin who was crying out for help. He had to do something to help her.  
  
"RIN!!!" he ran towards the place Rin had gone. When he arrived there, Rin was in the claws of a huge winged youkai that looked like a huge, evil bat. Ah-Un was lying against a tree; probably knock out, because of his attempt to save Rin.  
  
"Let her go, you winged freak!!" Jaken shrieked.  
  
"Jaken-sama, you came to rescue Rin!! Rin did not know Jaken-sama was so brave!" Rin exclaimed in admiration.  
  
But the truth was Jaken was trembling to his feet, hoping he was coming alive from rescuing Rin.  
  
"Hahaha, _you_, a repugnant little creature, have come to save a human being?! That's ridiculous! She's going to be my dinner and you're not going to stop me!!"  
  
He flapped his wings very hard, so very strong winds started coming from them, causing Jaken to fly a couple of meters away, against a tree, not so far away from Ah-Un.  
  
"Rin did not know Jaken-sama could fly either." Rin remarked. "Be quiet human, we're going somewhere more peaceful so I can eat you with no interference. Let's go!!"  
  
After that, the youkai took off. "RIN!!!" Jaken screamed trying to prevent the youkai taking her, but it was too late. The only thing he could hear was a vague "Jaken-sama!!" and the youkai flapping away, each time further.  
  
Kagura was looking at the moon, wondering where Sesshoumaru was. She proposed herself to go see him tomorrow, but she had to make up a good excuse. Than she could sort out those annoying feelings, and be able to go her own way without thinking about anyone. The problem was she couldn't think of any reasonable excuse. Suddenly she heard a flapping noise, coming closer and landing, not so far where she was. Then she heard weird noises. She decided to go and take a look. As she was walking towards the place, the noises grew each time clearer, turning into a certain dialogue. Hiding from behind a tree, she saw, a very big, winged youkai. He was with his back to her. Suddenly she heard a familiar voice;  
  
"Please, don't eat Rin. Rin is begging you!"  
  
It was that human girl Sesshoumaru was keeping as a companion! The youkai was going to eat her...but where was Sesshoumaru? At these moments he was suppose to come to save her. Then a horrible thought struck her; what if he didn't know what was happening? What if he was somewhere else?? Kagura hesitated. What was she going to do? She was the only at the moment, who could do something about the situation. But it wasn't her habit walking around and saving humans. Besides, if she didn't give a damn about them, why would she now? But, on the other hand, saving that child would be a good reason to see Sesshoumaru again. It was a good chance. She had to think fast, before she had no choice left. It was either saving her, or letting her die... But what was that choice going to be_**??!  
  
End chapter 2   
**  
I hope it wasn't too short; I was planning to make it longer but I changed my mind on the way. It would be more exciting to stop it here. I'll try to update as soon as possible!!  
  
From: Fiery Koneko _


	3. Chapter 3

**Favors  
**  
Disclaimer: I don't owe anything of Inu-Yasha. And if I did I wouldn't be writing fanfictions.  
  
_Well, here I am again!! I finally managed to finish chapter 3. I apologize for taking an eternity but I had many reasons. One of them is call 'parents' and another of them is 'exams' (evil school ones). I hope you can relate them. I'd like to thank the people who had reviewed puts dramatic puppy eyes Thank you! It means a lot to me!! And I also want to thank Silver Wolf Ryuki for that useful advice. What else is there for me to say? Oh yeah, hope you enjoy it!!   
  
****__Chapter 3  
_  
To see Sesshoumaru one last time before starting her own life... a part of her desperately wanted. The other part didn't want to have anything with anyone that had ever crossed her path; that was including Sesshoumaru. If she saved the girl there was a big chance that she would see him again. Was that what she wanted?  
  
"_NO, that's definitely not what I want!"_ she thought. _"Because I'm already having a hard time trying not to think about him when I haven't seen him for I while. Let aside if I see him now. I want to start a new life, now that I'm free, without having to deal with any past problems."  
  
_Kagura shook her head. No, and besides, the child was Sesshoumaru's responsibility and not hers. And what would she care if another human died? She turned around and started walking back. She was almost certain that when Sesshoumaru was away the toad was supposed to care about her. So, where was he now?  
  
"Please, somebody help! Help!!" she heard the girl cry desperately as she kept walking trough the dark woods.  
  
"Hahaha, cry all you want, human because that will be the last time you'll hear your voice before you die!! Your life is in my claws, and it won't be long before I get tired of you and eliminate you, so don't forget that!!"  
  
In a flash Kagura was strongly reminded of Naraku.  
  
_"Don't forget, Kagura, you heart is always in my hands...I can kill you when I feel like it..." _he had told her.  
  
She stopped, grunting. All right, if she let the child die, that would mean another Naraku-nightmare. And in fact, she already got annoyed of that arrogant mistake of a youkai.  
  
_"I'll only save her and leave her to be found by Sesshoumaru. If I do so I won't have to meet him."_ she thought.  
  
Rin closed her eyes. It was the end for her. Neither Jaken nor Ah-Un were able to save her and Sesshoumaru was far away, unaware of the situation. She was never going to see either of them, the only people who were so nice to her. Suddenly she heard a noise like a movement of a fan. It was very vague, but yet hearable. She opened her eyes, just to see powerful wind blades coming their way. The youkai dodged them just in time and Rin screamed in fear. She looked in the direction the blades had come and saw Kagura standing there, preparing to launch another attack.  
  
"And who the hell are you?" the bat-youkai asked.  
  
"There's no point in telling you; you're going to die." Kagura answered slightly annoyed. "But I will be the last person you see before you do so!"  
  
"Why do you try to defend that human? Got her sympathy or something?" he said in a mocking voice. "If I eat an innocent human child I will become even stronger!! If you want a good challenge, than let me eat the child. Not that you have much of a choice because if you do try to stop me I'll have to kill you too. You will not stop me from becoming more powerful! In fact, humans are delicious."  
  
"Than I'll just have to spoil your appetite!" Kagura answered back. "You bastard, I have no interest in seeing you grow 'stronger'!!" After that she threw some wind blades out of her fan. The youkai took off flight dodging the attack, in an attempt to escape.  
  
"You're not going anywhere!" Kagura shouted.  
  
She took out one of her feathers out of her hair, and followed the youkai. The youkai suddenly turned his ugly head, opened his mound and released a powerful blast. Kagura managed to dodge it before it nearly destroyed her. She felt her arm started to hurt but she had no time to worry about that. She threw some wind blades instead, which the youkai also dodged.  
  
"Fool!" he shouted. "If I were you I would be less reckless in trying to hit. If you're not careful you might hit the child!"  
  
Kagura cursed. She had to admit he was right. If she was saving the girl, she couldn't risk hurting her. The battle kept on in the air, and after a while Kagura managed to stop the youkai in his tracks, using a wind tornado and using her wind blades she managed to cut off his wings. The youkai screamed in pain, and let Rin go, while he was falling. Kagura knew she couldn't reach her to catch her before she hit the ground. She thought quickly and got an idea. Using the wind, she stopped Rin's fall and caught her in midair on her feather. The youkai fell on the ground and half alive, half dead he tried to escape. But Kagura didn't give him the chance. Out her fan she released a powerful tornado of wind who hit the youkai with such force, it disintegrated him completely. Kagura landed, and noticed Rin had fainted. Now what? She decided to leave the girl behind. She put Rin on the ground, and put her feather back in her hair. She walked away, but stopped, deciding to wait for Rin to wake up. Suddenly she noticed her arm was still hurting. It had started to bleed. That youkai had managed to hurt her after all.  
  
"_Damn, there goes my kimono."_ she thought. _"After this I'll have to clean myself up."  
  
_She hoped Rin woke up soon so she could go. The girl would be able to find her way back. And bringing her back wouldn't make much sense anymore. She wouldn't be able to see Sesshoumaru anyway.  
  
_"Wait...where did that come from? My plan was to try **NOT **to see him, so why do I suddenly want to?"_ she thought.  
  
A few minutes later, Rin woke up, a little bit confused but besides that she seemed to be all right. When she saw Kagura standing from a distance she smiled happily.  
  
"Kagura-sama, you saved Rin's life!! Rin is very grateful!!" That took Kagura by surprise. She didn't expect Rin to be so friendly with her or address her with –sama, especially not after she once got the order to kidnap her.  
  
"Hmpf, that's nothing. Don't think now that I'm going to be very friendly. I just did that because I owed me a favor."  
  
"A favor?" Rin asked surprised.  
  
"You know what I'm talking about, if you hadn't call Sesshoumaru at the moment I was dying he hadn't revived me. Now were even."  
  
She turned around and started walking the opposite direction, away from Rin. "Please, don't let Rin here all by herself!" she heard the child shout.  
  
"Go back!" was the only thing Kagura said.  
  
"But...Rin doesn't know the way!" Rin said confused.  
  
"That's your problem" Kagura answered.  
  
Suddenly Rin screamed. A snake youkai, who suddenly popped out of the ground, was about to attack her. Kagura sighted and threw some wind blades eliminating the youkai before it could reach Rin. Then, she realized something. If she bothered to save the child's life once it wouldn't make much sense letting her die now. In fact, she had to admit the girl didn't turn out to be the brat she thought she was going to be.  
  
"All right, come on. I'll help you find Sesshoumaru and then I'm off, OK?"  
  
"Hai!!! Thank you very much Kagura-sama!!" Rin answered cheerfully.  
  
"Whatever, let's go"  
  
They took off on Kagura's feather. "So, with way do I have to take you?" Kagura asked.  
  
"Hmm, Rin doesn't know where to go. Rin doesn't know her way back..."  
  
"Well try to find something familiar" Kagura replied in an annoyed tone. She had thought that this was going to be easier, but she hadn't expected that the girl didn't know her way. And on top of that, it was night. She knew a human's eyesight was rather bad in the dark.  
  
"Anything?" she asked Rin, who was sitting in front of her. But Rin didn't reply. Suddenly she fell forwards, off the feather.  
  
"What the hell do you think you're doing??!" Kagura shouted leaping forwards, managing to grab her just in time by the back of Rin's kimono. When she pulled her up, she noticed Rin had fallen asleep. _"This is getting nowhere, the kid's asleep, I can't sense anything in this area, my arm's hurt, and it's night. I can't keep on like this; I'll have to land." _she thought.  
  
After a while she found a cave that looked save enough to pass the night. She decided to land there. ——  
  
Rin woke up, looking around, rather confused. She found herself lying against a rocky wall in what it seemed like a cave. Not very far away from her was a campfire and at the other side of it she found Kagura sitting there. "What's going on?" she asked sleepily.  
  
"You fell asleep." Kagura answered. "Where spending the night here. Tomorrow we'll keep searching."  
  
"Kagura-sama, Rin's hungry. Where can Rin find some food around here?"  
  
"You're hungry, at this time??!" Kagura said, taken by surprise.  
  
"Hai" Rin answered.  
  
"Well, go and find something to eat."  
  
"But...it's dark, Rin can't see." Rin murmured.  
  
Kagura sighted and stood up. "Let's go, then."

——  
  
They found some melons growing somewhat deeper inside the cave. She gave Rin one and they returned to the cave.  
  
"Uh, Kagura-sama, can you cut the melon for Rin, please?" Rin asked.  
  
Kagura didn't answer and took her fan and swished... Rin looked up, and for split second nothing happened. Then the melon sliced in half.  
  
"Thank you" Rin said. She sat next to Kagura, took one of the melon halves and started eating.  
  
_**End chapter 3  
**Well, that's another chapter finished. I promise I'll work harder for chapter 4, OK? And I hope you guys keep reviewing, please? I'll try to update much sooner. See ya!!  
  
From: Fiery Koneko _


	4. Chapter 4

**Favors**  
  
Disclaimer: I don't owe anything of Inu-Yasha. And if I did I wouldn't be writing fanfictions.  
  
_Hi again!! Like I promised, I'm back with another chapter. I'll do my best to make more time to update sooner (But I won't promise anything yet...) I've already finished this chappie some time ago, but I wanted to wait for more reviews. And talking about reviews; many thanks for those of you who reviewed (THANK YOU SOOO MUCH) and (like always) I hope you enjoy it!!   
  
**Chapter 4**  
  
Kagura looked around confused. Where was she? She had no idea. It was a complete strange place, surrounded by thick mist. It was chilling cold. And she had that horrible feeling that something wasn't right although she didn't know what. And at the same time she felt frightened, yet she couldn't give a single reason why. She could swear she knew this place somehow. Suddenly she heard someone laughing. Although she couldn't see or sense who it was, she immediately knew. There was only one person whose laugh could send her chills down her spine...Naraku!! As soon as she had thought that, a figure became slowly visible. Naraku was slowly walking towards her. He was wearing his baboon pelt but he was keeping his face visible, making his red eyes glow more sinister than ever.  
  
"N-Naraku!" Kagura managed to gasp. "But...you're...dead!"  
  
"And if I was, would I be standing in front of you, Kagura?" he replied with an evil smile. "I see you've escaped me, didn't you? Even if you betrayed me you have managed to do so. That was not what I had in mind. No one betrays Naraku unpunished, Kagura. I hope you haven't forgotten that.  
  
"........." Kagura stood nailed to the ground, unable to move. She tried to explain to herself how Naraku could possibly come out of nowhere (he was supposed to be dead) but couldn't, because her mind had gone blank.  
  
"But that doesn't matter to me anymore" Naraku continued.  
  
Kagura looked up in surprise.  
  
"If you promise me to go back and serve me for you entire meaningless life, I can forgive you. If you don't I will vanish your existence the way I once said I was going to. It's clear you don't have much of a choice."  
  
"No, not this again!" Kagura thought desperately. She wasn't going back, not when she had gained her freedom. But now had herself again, or die. He was back, and it was going to be the same nightmare.  
  
"I'm still waiting..." Naraku said. "And I'm lacking patience."  
  
Kagura gulped. She felt her heart beating in fear. What was she going to do? Wait a second...her heart?! Back then he held her heart, that's why she couldn't escape. That's how she was being manipulated. But now...now he couldn't do that anymore.  
  
She smirked. "Sorry to spoil your fun, Naraku, but I've gotten my heart now, which gives me independency from you and there's no way in hell you can manipulate you me, you asshole!"  
  
But to her horror Naraku's evil smile didn't fade away like she had expected, but it grew even wider.  
  
"Aren't you forgetting something, Kagura?" he said.  
  
Suddenly vines out of nowhere grabbed her very tight, so she could hardly breathe. Those vines came probably from Naraku's body and had surrounded her while they were talking, and were well camouflaged because of the mist. She tried desperately to struggle free, but instead of letting go, the vines tightened themselves even more around her.  
  
"Kukuku, as you can see, struggling makes it worse." Naraku said smirking. "You are right about the fact that I no longer hold your heart, but, like I just mentioned before, you've forgotten about a tiny detail: you are still my detachment. I gave you life and can always take it away, no matter what. So, as I can see, you're still rebellious so I'm putting you back."  
  
With this said, he started pulling her slowly towards him, ready to reabsorb her.  
  
"Let go of me, you bastard!!" Kagura screamed, her eyes flashing with fear. "LET ME GO!!"  
  
But Naraku started laughing evilly (like every single villain does when something's going his way). "Scream all you want, no one will hear you now."  
  
Kagura was very close of being reabsorbed again. It was the end for her; she was going to die after all. After all she struggled to be alive; it was going to be her end anyways. "Noooooo....!!!!"   
  
_"Kagura-sama, wake up!! Please wake up; you were having a bad dream!!"  
  
Her eyes flew open. She felt she was bathed in sweat. The rain was pouring down outside. It took her a few seconds to register what was going on. She somehow had fallen asleep, and had that horrible nightmare. She had been probably screaming in her dream, otherwise the girl wouldn't have woken her up. Rin was looking worried at her.  
  
"Kagura-sama, are you all right?" she asked.  
  
"I'm fine, just a stupid nightmare, that's all" Kagura snorted.  
  
"But you looked so frightened" Rin said.  
  
"I told you I'm fine." Kagura grunted.  
  
"It's OK to be scared sometimes." Rin said in an understanding tone.  
  
"Who told you I was scared of that bastard!!" Kagura snapped, sounding harsher than she meant to.  
  
But Rin didn't flinch like any other kid would do if someone would speak to it in that menacing tone.. She smiled at Kagura but then let out a giggle.  
  
"What?! What is so funny?" Kagura asked, a bit stunned.  
  
"Don't worry Kagura-sama, Rin had the same problem." she said laughing, and pointed at the peace of ground Kagura was sitting.  
  
Kagura's mouth opened in horror because by her back, on the ground was a tiny, barely noticeable puddle. "What the ––"  
  
"Rin did not know grow-ups could _wet themselves _too." Rin said, still laughing.  
  
No, it wasn't happening. Kagura knew for sure she couldn't do something embarrassing like that, but from what she could make out, it appeared to be true. "I'm not—" Kagura stopped her sentence when she felt something cold dripping on her head. She looked up and saw a leak in the cave's roof. There was where that puddle had come.  
  
"Hmpf, it's just a leak in the roof." she said and stood up to sit somewhere else, at the same time feeling a great relief.  
  
Not much later Rin came and sat next to her, still eating her melon half with the other one on her lap.  
  
"Are you hungry, Kagura-sama?" she asked.  
  
"No, I'm not" Kagura replied, when suddenly her stomach let out a loud growl, betraying her completely.  
  
Rin smiled and to Kagura's surprise, she offered her the other half. "Here, you can have it" she said in a friendly tone.  
  
"I don't need your charity" Kagura said, letting her know she wasn't planning to make friends and that she didn't rely on anyone.  
  
"OK" Rin answered putting the melon half between her and Kagura. "But if you ever become hungrier..."  
  
After a while Kagura decided to take the melon half anyway. She couldn't bear her hungry stomach any longer. And it was the only thing to eat. "Kagura-sama, Rin was wondering if Kagura-sama has any friends." Rin suddenly said.  
  
The question took her a bit off guard. She never expected that question to pop out, least of all from that girl.  
  
"I've always been lonely, and who need friends anyway?" she answered.  
  
"If one has friends to rely on, that person won't have many nightmares." Rin replied.  
  
"Who told you that?" Kagura asked surprised. As far as she'd known, a kid wouldn't say such weird words.  
  
"Rin's mommy told Rin that." Rin answered. And to Kagura's surprise, her innocent, cheerful face suddenly saddened. "Before Rin met Sesshoumaru-sama Rin has been very lonely." she answered. "All the children had a mommy and a daddy and a big brother but Rin hadn't."  
  
That, too, took Kagura by surprise. "What happened to them?" she asked before she could stop herself.  
  
"They were killed by very mean people who came to rob the village."  
  
So that was what had happened to the girl. That's how she ended up with Sesshoumaru. But after that horrible experience, she had still remained cheerful? What caused her to keep on?  
  
"At least your parents appear to have cared about you." Kagura said.  
  
"Do you have any parents or family left?" Rin asked.  
  
"The one who's responsible for my existence couldn't care less whether I died or got killed. And my 'brothers' and 'sisters' either do. They don't give a damn, actually. No one does." she answered more to herself than to Rin. Well, that was her short answer about her 'family'. Although she couldn't call them family, because a real family would care about her. _"Not that I need one"_ she thought.  
  
"Kagura-sama, Rin knows that is not true. Rin cares about Kagura-sama. And Rin doesn't know if Kagura-sama wants to be Rin's friend, but Rin will always be Kagura-sama's friend." Rin suddenly said with determination.  
  
Kagura stared at Rin in surprise. No one had ever showed her care and friendliness before, and now she ended up having a simple human child as a friend. She couldn't help feeling very touched by the little girl's words. She smiled.  
  
"Uuh... thanks." she brought out.  
  
Rin smiled back. "And Rin knows Sesshoumaru-sama cares about Kagura-sama too."  
  
Kagura never thought the kid could surprise her this much. First of all came the fact that the girl still cared about her, even though she didn't treat her exactly friendly. And Sesshoumaru...did he care about her too? Or was the child just making things up? That last part let her very confused.  
  
"So he cares about me too, huh." she said quietly, more to herself than to Rin.  
  
But Rin didn't answer; she had fallen asleep again. Kagura looked at her for a while. She couldn't believe the kid had made her feel better. Usually, after a nightmare she felt frightened and miserable. But now, she had had one of the worst nightmares ever, and she felt rather happy. "_So what if Sesshoumaru does care about me?" _she thought. She couldn't believe one small person could interfere with her thoughts this much. Suddenly Rin didn't appear to be just a kid, but more a little sister she had to care about for now. But jugging by the position she was asleep in, she looked rather uncomfortable. She slowly reached forwards, grabbed Rin and half pulled her on her lap, like a big sister would do.  
  
Hours later, Rin woke up half asleep.  
  
"Kagura-sama, promise Rin you're staying forever." Rin said.  
  
"Eh? W-whatever, just go to sleep." Kagura replied, willing to promise everything as long as Rin went to sleep again, surely not hearing what Rin just made her promise. ——  
  
Meanwhile, Jaken was still looking for Rin. He sighed. He had to find her before dawn, or Sesshoumaru would come, and he, Jaken had to explain everything and meat his doom. He knew there was a big opportunity that Rin was alive, because he had found the dead corpse of the youkai that had kidnapped her. His only hopes were that whatever killed Rin's kidnapper, wouldn't eat or attack Rin instead. And it was raining, so his visibility was very poor. He was on the verge of giving up. What the toad didn't know was that he wasn't far from the cave where Kagura and Rin were staying.  
  
_**End chapter 4 **  
  
Well, another chapter done. I hope you guys enjoyed it. And I also hope you review as well (please?). I'll update as soon as I can. C ya!!  
  
From: Fiery Koneko  
  
Ps: I hope Naraku stayed in character! ; _


	5. Chapter 5

> > **_Favors  
_**  
Disclaimer: I don't owe anything of Inu-Yasha. And if I did I wouldn't be writing fanfictions.  
  
_Hi everyone!! Here I am again. I'm sorry I didn't update soon, like I promised but I was very occupied. First, I'm passing my summer vacation in Colombia and it's hard to find somewhere to write. Second, it's not a happy vacation because my dad's very sick and is having the necessary treatment here. And it's hard to think of anything in such sphere. But I finally managed to think of something and update it. OK, but anyway, I'd like to thank all those who reviewed (Veoki, I owe you a BIG THANKS for those advises and remarks; they were so useful!!) and like always, I hope you enjoy it.   
_  
**_Chapter 5_**  
  
Kagura woke up by the sound of the chattering birds and the pain of her injured arm.  
  
"Good morning, Kagura-sama!" a voice suddenly said. Rin had woken up.  
  
"Since when are you awake?" Kagura asked in reply.  
  
"A long time ago, but Rin didn't want to wake Kagura-sama."  
  
Kagura couldn't help letting out a small smile. "Come on, we're going" she said walking out of the cave followed by Rin. She took a feather out of her hear, which immediately transformed.  
  
Not later they were flying over the woods. Suddenly Kagura noticed a moving green shape followed by a bigger apparently two-headed youkai. Rin seemed to notice it too.  
  
"Kagura-sama, there are Jaken-sama and Ah-Un!!  
  
They landed in front of them. That took Jaken by such surprise he almost fell backwards.  
  
"W-what are you doing here?!" he stammered to Kagura.  
  
"I'll take that as a 'thank you' for bringing the kid." She said ironically.  
  
Then Jaken noticed Rin. "Rin, what are you doing there? Wait, I get it!!" he shrieked pointing at Kagura. "You...why did _you_ happened to bring her here? Was it just a lucky found or a kidnapper's guilty conscience?"  
  
"And what the hell do you mean by that?" Kagura snapped.  
  
"Just the way it sounds; you kidnapped her!!" Jaken yelled  
  
"And why would I do that?" Kagura yelled back.  
  
"Maybe to get Sesshoumaru-sama to do something for you!"  
  
"That doesn't make any sense, you baka!" Kagura snapped. "It does for me! You—"  
  
"What's happening here?" a monotone voice said, interrupting Jaken.  
  
"Sesshoumaru-sama, she—" Jaken tried to say.  
  
"Jaken shut up." Sesshoumaru said turning to Kagura.  
  
"What are you doing here?" he asked.  
  
But before Kagura could answer Rin said: "Sesshoumaru-sama, Kagura-sama saved Rin's life when she was attacked by a mean youkai and she took care of Rin and she brought Rin back here!!  
  
Sesshoumaru was looking now at Kagura's arm, which had a large red spot, but decided not to say anything to that matter.  
  
"I...I'll be going then." Kagura said, putting a hand on one of the feathers in her hear. She had to admit she might miss the little human a bit.  
  
"Wait, Kagura-sama, you promised Rin you'll stay with her!" Rin suddenly said.  
  
"That I did what?! I never said that!" Kagura said surprised.  
  
"You promised Rin before she fall asleep again" Rin said, putting a sad face.  
  
The Kagura remembered. But back then, she was half-asleep and had answered with a "whatever" just to make her go to sleep.  
  
"I wasn't conscious what I was saying on that moment." she explained.  
  
"But you did promised her that. It's not good to break promises with a child." Sesshoumaru suddenly said. "However it's up to you whether you keep that promise."  
  
Kagura looked at him in amaze. Was he suggesting her to stay? Or was it just her impression?  
  
"So, it's OK with you if I ever decided to stay?" she asked him. Jaken's mouth opened widely and looked from Kagura to Sesshoumaru in horror.  
  
"I didn't say that." he said. "But it won't matter to me whether you stay or not."  
  
Kagura hesitated. What was she going to do?  
  
"Let's go." Sesshoumaru suddenly said. He started walking away. Jaken followed, and then slowly Rin, with Ah-Un giving Kagura a sad look over her shoulder. "You don't have to stay with Rin if you don't want to." she said.  
  
Kagura sighted. Why was she holding back? The only people who ever took the bother to care about her well being were there so what was she waiting for?  
  
"Allright! I'll stay." she said.  
  
Rin face brightened as she ran to Kagura and hugged her. Sesshoumaru turned around to look and Kagura didn't know what to do.  
  
"She seems to be fond of you." he stated. "If you're planning to stay, you'll have to take care of her. It seems Jaken isn't capable of such simple job."  
  
"I can handle it." Kagura said giving Jaken a mocking look. Jaken glared back furiously.  
  
"Let's go, then." Sesshoumaru said walking further.  
  
——  
  
Kagura, Jaken and Rin were sitting by the campfire. It was allready getting dark. They weren't far from a hot spring and Sesshoumaru had gone off somewhere without mentioning where. Suddenly Kagura stood up.  
  
"I'm tired of waiting here for Sesshoumaru to come. Tell him I went to take a bath. Rin, can you take care of yourself while I'm taking a bath?"  
  
"Hai!!!" Rin said, eager to show Kagura she was a big girl.  
  
"Good." Kagura said satisfied. "I'll be going then.  
  
"Wait, woman!!" Jaken said. "You can't —"  
  
"I can't what?" Kagura snapped.  
  
"You can't go yet! You have to wait until Sesshoumaru-sama returns! We don't know where he is right now!"  
  
"So? That has nothing to do with the fact I'll take a bath."  
  
She turned around and walked towards the hot spring. When she arrived she noticed a thick mist covering the whole hot spring.  
  
_"This is perfect. This way I can take a bath safely without the risk of perverted youkai daring to take a peep."_ she thought.  
  
She quickly removed her clothing and entered the hot spring. It was so relaxing she didn't notice the mist had started to clear. She was standing in the middle of the hot spring when she noticed a misty figure slowly forming because of the lack of mist. When she recognized the figure the temperature of her cheeks raised steadily and she screamed and ducked so only her face was out of the water.  
  
"WHAT THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING!" she spat.  
  
It appeared she wasn't the only one who planned to take a nice hot bath. The reason of Sesshoumaru's absence was quite simple; he was standing next to Kagura. Because of the thick mist she hadn't noticed him before.  
  
"Taking a bath." he said in an expressionless tone.  
  
"Well get the fuck out of here or I'll make you!!"  
  
"I believe you're the intruder here, not me." he stated.  
  
"How could I know you were taking a bath in that thick mist!" she snapped.  
  
"Why are you blaming me, then?"  
  
"I...I...Oh, shut up! One of us has to get out of here. And you are supposed to finished."  
  
"I believe it's too cold for any of us to get out." he said.  
  
"That's the lamest excuse I've ever heard!" Kagura snapped.  
  
"You try, then, if you don't believe me." he answered.  
  
"Close your eyes and turn around." Kagura commanded.  
  
Sesshoumaru turned his back to her and closed his eyes. He heard her stand up, curse heavily, and go back in the water.  
  
"I was right wasn't I?" he said in a tone of light amusement.  
  
"Oh, fuck you!" was her reply to that.  
  
It was quiet for a moment, both of them with their backs turned to each other. Kagura advanced a bit forwards in direction of the shore.  
  
Suddenly she heard a noise and out of the bushes jumped an ugly looking youkai directly to Kagura, in attack form.It happened so fast she hadn't got time to react. But then, out of nowhere Sesshoumaru embraced her, shielding her and receiving the youkai's attack on his back. By a tiny second Kagura noticed they were so close, she could feel his body against hers. But Sesshoumaru let her go quickly and turned to the youkai and attacked it with his poisonous claws, disintegrating it completely.  
  
The she noticed the water had adopted a reddish color. It was coming from Sesshoumaru's injury on his back.  
  
"Why...why did you do that?" she asked rather confused.  
  
Sesshoumaru didn't answer directly but remained quiet for a few seconds.  
  
"I owed you a favor." he said simply.  
  
"What favor?" she asked even more confused.  
  
"You saved Rin's life. That was my responsability."  
  
Kagura couldn't think of a reply for that so she said instead: "Err...you're injured, you need some help?" "I can handle it. I believe it's time we get out of the hot spring." "I guess so. Turn around." Kagura said. "I'll get dressed first. Sesshoumaru did what she told him to do. After she got dressed (it wasn't cold anymore), Kagura walked away but stopped in hesitation.  
  
"You'll need bandage for that injury." she said. "I...I'll get some."  
  
Before Sesshoumaru could answer, she walked away. He decided to start getting out of the lake and to put on his pants.  
  
Kagura had found the bandages quicker than she had thought. They were next to Jaken.  
  
"Why had you screamed?" he asked as she bent to pick up the bandages. "Did you found out the reasons why Sesshoumaru-sama went away?"  
  
"Shut up! It's non of your business!" Kagura snapped.  
  
_"Dammit! He could probably assume what has happened. If he says something else to that matter, I swear I'll kill him!"  
_  
But luckily he decided to shut up and Kagura returned to the hot spring, returning sooner than Sesshoumaru expected. When she removed the bushes towards the hot spring, where Sesshoumaru was, she got a full view of him naked. She screamed, and blushing furiously she turned around.  
  
"What the hell were you doing?!" she screamed.  
  
"Getting dressed." he said simply. "It was suppose to prevent this."  
  
"Well dress quickly." Kagura snapped.  
  
Not much later he had put his pants on and Kagura started bandaging his back.  
  
"Why are you helping me?" he asked as she was on the verge of finishing bandaging him.  
  
"I owed you a favor, remember? You saved my life." she answered tying the bandage in a tight knot. After that she used the remaining bandages to bandage her own injury on her arm, which came out to be a difficult thing to do with only one hand. Without saying anything Sesshoumaru slowly grabbed her hand which caused Kagura's cheeks to get a reddish shade.  
  
"What do you think you're..." she started, when Sesshoumaru simply put her hand on the ground and started bandaging her arm.  
  
"I believe it's difficult to bandage yourself with only one arm." he said simply.  
  
"Why...?"  
  
"I owed you a favor. You bandaged me." She sighted and allowed him to bandage her in silent.  
  
——  
  
It was night. After Kagura made sure Rin was fast asleep she walked away. She had a lot to think about. First, the reason why Sesshoumaru had helped her. And why, on the moment her had embraced her protectively she had felt her heart beating so loud it was almost audible? And why had she blushed when he got her hand?  
  
_"What the hell is happening to me? I'm not falling in love aren't I? No, no, no and NO! I'm definitely not falling for him. Or am I?"  
_  
She felt slightly confused.  
  
_"When I thought I wanted to see him one last time, it was to sort out my weird feelings! Not to get them even stronger and more confusing!"  
_  
Suddenly she felt she was being watched. When she turned around, her eyes met Sesshoumaru's, who was watching her silently from a distance. As soon as their eyes met both of them turned away quickly from each other. Immediately she felt her heart beating faster than ever. She sighted and decided to let the thinking for the next day.  
  
Sesshoumaru stared in front of him. It had been a very eventful day. And somehow he felt a tiny attraction towards the wind socceres, although he had a great difficulty to admit it to himself or to admit that deep inside he found her interesting. He wondered what was going to happen the next day.  
  
_ **End chapter 5**_  
  
_Ok, another chapter done! I don't know when I can update chapter 6 but I'll try to make it soon. I hope you enjoyed it and PLEASE review! It really helps! C'ya!!   
  
From: Fiery Koneko _


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